Every now and then, we’re graced with the refreshing sound of European enthused rock and roll. It happened with Rammstein, it happened with The Hives and it’s happened with Sauropod. A truly eclectic offering of slacker inspired lyricism contrasts with the scattered melodies that appear throughout the eleven-track LP.
I’ve got a weak spot for any band that utilises both male and female voice. When Purple released their debut it reinvigorated my love for both skater-style thrash punk and happy-go-lucky melodic pop songs. Sauropod have done the exact same thing. ‘Headphones’ is a slightly sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek song that sounds like an entirely different band to their debut single ‘Winter Song’; a powerful barrage of shrieks, shouts and riffs sounding like the love child of Wolf Alice and Rammstein.
With so many sounds coming from the album it’s hard to tell which direction the trio wish to find their comfort zone in. ‘You And Me Should Leave Together Tonight’ nods to sounds as simple as folk to as bizarre as sea shanty. It’s catchy and it’s begging for a sing along, but it’s tough and aggressive. The amalgamation of sounds makes this the standout song of the record for me.
The record loses it’s pace soon after the first few songs and mellows out, riding through easy-listening Weezer-esque ‘Running Song’ before immediately firing back with ‘(I’ve Been Bad) On Emma’. Keeping true to their sporadic sound the song utilises a simple punk riff to transition back and forth between a thrash of violent guitar sounds and a nervous lyricism.
Later in the album, ‘Edge Of A Cloud’ adds their most accessibly poppy sound to the album. With a chorus sounding like a deranged children’s show theme tune, Sauropod manage to execute a satirical parody of a pop song perfectly, making this one of the biggest surprises of the album.
Moving through the title-track and intermission we come to the final song of the album, ‘On The Hill’. It’s solemn and a bit soft compared to the rest of the album. It’s a beautiful idea to finish off this exhaustingly fast-paced album with a lullaby, although you’re left wanting more. Whether this is intentional or not I can’t decide, but what I can confirm is that ‘Roaring At The Storm’ is an album undoubtedly worth your time. It packs a punch, is a lot of fun and has a few very welcome surprises.
MAX GAYLER